Combination grass mowing and rolling apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for mowing and rolling grass comprising a lower mowing-rolling unit, a handle coupled to the mowing rolling unit and securable in two or more positions, a first of said two or more positions for performing grass mowing operations, a second of said two or more positions for performing grass rolling operations, said lower unit comprising a rear driving assembly, a front roller assembly, a grass-cutting assembly interposed between the front roller assembly and the rear driving assembly, and a drive-train gear assembly coupling the rear driving assembly to the grass-cutting assembly for rotatingly driving said grass-cutting assembly during forward movement of the apparatus, said drive-train gear assembly comprising a first drive gear, a second transducer gear, a drive shaft and a third gear secured to said first drive shaft, whereupon forward movement of the apparatus drives said first drive gear which in turn drives said second gear, said second gear in turn driving said third gear and said first drive shaft, thereby driving the grass-cutting assembly.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority on U.S. patent application Ser.No. 60/103,199, a provisional patent application filed Feb. 17, 2000.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] This invention relates to apparatuses for mowing grass and, moreparticularly, relates to a manually operated, combination mowing androlling apparatus intended to short mow and/or manicure grass found, forexample, on a golf putting green or croquet court.

BACKGROUND ART

[0003] In view of the onslaught of domestic and resort club-type puttinggreens and croquet courts, there's a growing need for a practical,efficient and inexpensive means for maintaining the grass of such greensor courts. Such maintenance may include mowing, manicuring or rollingthe grass. Typically, only golf courses, resort clubs or other largerfacilities have the necessary equipment and personnel to maintain suchgrass. There is little available for a smaller facility, particularly adomestic putting green.

[0004] Conventional attempts to address this need include a greensmowingmachine offered many years ago by Ransomes, a U.K. company. Ransomes'smodels are believed to be no longer in production. Another prior artattempt is currently offered by McLane Manufacturing, Inc., Paramount,Calif. McLane offers self-propelled and man-powered lawn mowers for suchapplications.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

[0005] In accordance with the present invention, I provide a combinationgrass mowing and rolling apparatus comprising a lower unit assemblycoupled to an upper handle assembly, which is securable in varyingpositions to accommodate the height of the operator and to facilitatethe rolling of the grass as well. The alternate position of the handleassembly also facilitates the transporting and storage of the apparatus.

[0006] The lower unit assembly comprises a rear-drive-roller assembly, afront roller assembly, a grass-cutting reel interposed between the frontand rear drive roller assemblies, a grass-catching assembly arrangedadjacent the grass-cutting reel, a grass deflector for deflecting cutgrass generated by the cutting reel to be collected in thegrass-catching assembly, and a drive-train gear assembly coupling therear drive-roller assembly to the cutting reel for providing rotationaldriving force to the cutting reel.

[0007] The rear drive-roller assembly includes a first roller positionedadjacent to a second roller, each of which is capable of independentmovement relative to the other to better facilitate the turning of thedevice when in operation. The front roller assembly is further providedwith means for adjusting the vertical height at which the grass is cut.The apparatus further includes means for resharpening the blades of thecutting reel.

[0008] An improvement over the prior art provided by my presentinvention is it serves as both a mowing device and a rolling device tomanicure the grass in a smoothing action. This is accomplished by theupper handle assembly being movable between first and second positionsto provide for, in a first position, for example, forward movement ofthe apparatus to mow or cut the grass, and in a second position tofacilitate rolling the grass in a smoothing action or to allow theapparatus to be transported over the ground or similar surface. (Forclarity, this second position is referred to as the “rolling-transport”mode.)

[0009] Other objects, advantages and novel features of the inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description of theinvention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The foregoing and other features of the invention will be moreparticularly described in connection with the preferred embodiment andwith reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

[0011]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus provided by apreferred embodiment of the invention;

[0012]FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the apparatus showing its drive gearassembly in an exploded fashion;

[0013]FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the lower unit assembly of thisinvention;

[0014]FIG. 4A is a top plan view, with partial cross section, of therear drive roller assembly of the invention;

[0015]FIG. 4B is a side plan view of the rear drive roller assembly ofFIG. 4A;

[0016]FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the first and second rollers of therear drive roller assembly of FIGS. 4A and 4B;

[0017]FIG. 6A is a top plan view of the front roller assembly of thisapparatus shown in isolation;

[0018]FIG. 6B is a side plan view of the front roller assembly of FIG.6A;

[0019]FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the front roller assembly of FIG. 6Ashown in isolation;

[0020]FIG. 8A is a top plan view of the grass catching assembly of thisinvention;

[0021]FIG. 8B is a side plan view of the grass catching assembly of FIG.8A;

[0022]FIG. 9 is a partial perspective view of the means provided by theapparatus by which the blades of the cutting reel may be resharpened;

[0023]FIG. 10 is an exploded view showing in isolation the upper handleassembly of the apparatus;

[0024]FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the invention showing thealternative positions of the upper handle assembly;

[0025]FIG. 12 is an enlarged, isolated view of the means by which theupper handle assembly may be releasably engaged to the lower unitassembly at varying positions; and

[0026]FIG. 13 is a side plan view of the apparatus of this inventionconfigured in the rolling-transport mode.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[0027] Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference numeralsdesignate identical or corresponding parts or elements throughout theseveral views, FIGS. 1 and 2 show a preferred embodiment of thisinvention comprising an apparatus 10 including a lower unit 12 and anupper handle assembly 14 pivotally coupled to the lower unit 12 suchthat the handle assembly is movable through varying positions. The lowerunit assembly 12 comprises a rear drive-roller assembly 16, a frontroller assembly 18, a grass-cutting reel 20 interposed between the frontroller assembly 18 and rear roller assembly 16, a grass-catchingassembly 22 arranged adjacent the grass-cutting reel 20, a grassdeflector 24 for deflecting cut grass generated by the cutting reel 20to the grass-catching assembly 22, and a drive-train gear assembly 26coupling the rear drive roller 16 to the cutting reel 20 for providing arotational driving force to the drive shaft 42 carrying the cutting reel20.

[0028] The drive-train gear assembly 26 as shown in FIG. 2 includes afirst main drive gear 30 that, upon movement of the apparatus 10,engages and turns a second transducer gear 28, which in turn engages andturns a third gear 42, which is fixedly secured to drive shaft 42 of thecutting reel 20. All of the gear assembly 26 is housed within a gearcover 32 adjacent the exterior of the side plate 12 a of the lower unit12. Gear cover 32 is fastened to side plate 12 a by way of a pluralityof conventional fasteners 32 a. Main drive gear 30 is secured to rotateabout a drive shaft 34 by way of a key 30 a that is received within keyslot 34 a provided near the end of drive shaft 34. The transducer gear28 is arranged in a journaled manner upon shaft 36 to rotate freelythereabout by way of bushing 38. The third gear 40 is fixed to rotate incooperation with drive shaft 42 by way of roll pin 42 a.

[0029] In operation, the rolling movement of rear drive roller assembly16 rotates drive shaft 34, which in turn rotates drive gear 30. Drivegear 30 engages a first portion 28 b of transducer gear 28, which isallowed to rotate freely about shaft 36. The rotational movement of thetransducer gear 28 is then translated by way of its second gear portion28 a to the third gear 40, which in turn rotates drive shaft 42, therebydriving grass-cutting reel 20.

[0030] The lower unit assembly 12 is shown in an exploded view in FIG.3, comprising the rear drive roller assembly 16 arranged between theside plates 12 a, 12 b, together with a spacer bar 12 c extending alsobetween the two side plates. Spacer bar 12 c is secured in place at eachof its ends by conventional fasteners 12 c′. A second spacer bar 13 c isprovided forward of the reel 20 extending and secured between sideplates 12 a and 12 b by conventional fasteners 13 c′. For purposes ofsupporting the grass-catching assembly 22, as will be discussed below, apair of shoulder bolts 15 are provided secured to the side plates by,preferably, nylon lock nuts 15′. While the shoulder bolts 15 are shownin FIG. 3 as extending inwardly, they may extend outwardly as wellwithout impacting the effective operation of this invention.

[0031] Grass-cutting reel 20 rotates about its drive shaft 42 thatextends at each end through bearings 21, which in turn rotate withinbearing blocks 23. Bearing blocks 23 are secured to the interior side ofeach side plate 12 a and 12 b and rest within a bracket 25 affixed tothe interior side of each side A bolt 25 a extends through each sideplate and, in conjunction with hex nut 25 b, secures the bearing blocktherewithin. A spring 23′ is arranged to is disposed within the block 23to constantly urge the drive shaft 42 carrying the cutting reel upwardlyto maintain a gap between the blades and a bed knife 52 (preferablyabout 0.002 inches) and prevent the shaft from gradually slippingdownwardly to a point where the blades of the cutting reel would comeinto contact with the bed knife during rotation.

[0032] The lower unit assembly 12 further includes a grass deflector 24secured to a bed knife holder 50 and the bed knife 52 by way of aplurality of fasteners 52. Bed knife holder 50 is secured to extendbetween the side plates 12 a and 12 b by being secured to ledge abutment50 a by fasteners 50 b. Bed knife 52 acts provides, in conjunction withthe cutting blades, the shearing action that cuts the grass in a mannersimilar to a pair of scissors. In a preferred embodiment, bed knife 52is specially designed to be much thinner than conventional bed knifesused in conventional rotary mowers. This enables the apparatus of thisinvention to cut grass as short as ⅛ inch.

[0033] Referring now to FIGS. 4A, 4B and 5, the rear drive assembly 16is shown with partial cut away to show its inner components. Driveroller assembly 16 includes a first roller 16 a positioned closelyadjacent a second roller 16 b, with a gap “G” therebetween of,preferably, about 0.06 inches. Drive shaft 34 is of a single-piececonstruction and extends completely through both rollers 16 a and 16 b.(For purposes of clarity, the first and second roller 16 a and 16 b areshown in FIG. 5 in partial cut-away fashion.) Secured to the outer sideof rollers 16 a and 16 b is a bearing assembly 60 secured by way offastener 62 and, preferably, nylon lock nut 64. A bearing sleeve 66 isthen provided disposed interiorly of each roller 16 a and 16 b. Insideof each roller is a pair of clutch bearing assemblies 68 secured to theside walls 16 a′ and 16 b′ of first and second rollers 16 a and 16 b,respectively. Each bearing housing assembly 68 preferably includes abearing housing 70 through which rests a bearing 72, sealed at each endby a pair of seals 74. Each bearing housing assembly 68 is secured toits respective sidewall 16 a′ or 16 b′ by fasteners 76. To maintain asecured engagement of the bearing housing assembly 68, a lock washer 78may be employed. The clutch bearings 68 allow the apparatus 10 and,hence the rear drive roller assembly 16, to be moved in the reversedirection while the cutting reel 20 is permitted to continue its forwardrotational movement freely without power.

[0034] To maintain the gap G between the first and second rollers 16 a,16 b, a spacer 79 is arranged about drive shaft 34 between the tworollers. As shown in FIG. 4A, drive shaft 34 is provided with a key slot34′ at one end to receive the key 30 a (FIG. 2) to provide for the fixedrotation of the drive gear 30 in conjunction with shaft 34.

[0035] Front roller assembly 18 is shown in FIGS. 6A, 6B and 7,comprising a roller 18′ freely rotating about a shaft 18 a extendingbetween opposing weldments 18 b and 18 c. Disposed within the centralopening of roller end caps 18 c is a bushing 18 b. At one end of thedrive roller assembly 18, the front roller weldment 18 b may be definedby a pivot block having a slot opening 19 provided therein and athreaded opening 19′ extending across the slot 19 into the main portionof the body of block 18 b. The near end of shaft 18 a is received withinan opening 19″ provided in block 18. A threaded fastener 18 b′ is thenreceived within opening 19′ and, upon tightening, securely clamps theend of shaft 18 a within the block 18 b.

[0036] At the opposing end of the roller assembly 18, that weldment 18 bmay be defined by an adjusting block adapted to receive an adjustingscrew 80 which extends down through a spring 82, which collectively inturn extend downwardly through a yoke portion 83 a extending upwardlyfrom the block 18 b. A clevis 84 extends through a pair of openings 83provided in the yoke 83 a and secures the lower end of the adjustingscrew 80 within the adjustment block 18 b.

[0037] Attached to the upper end of the adjusting screw 80 is a handknob 86. Also extending between the two opposing weldments 18 b is aspacer bar 86 to add further rigidity to the front roller assembly 18.The end of the shaft 18 a nearest that end is secured within theadjustment block in a clamping manner similar to that at the opposingend by way of threaded fastener 18 b′ being received within opening 19′.

[0038] The adjustment means provided by adjusting knob 86 may beactivated manually to lower or raise the height at which the grass iscut. In a preferred embodiment, turning the adjustment knob 86counter-clockwise lowers the cutting height; while turning the knobclockwise raises the cutting height. The height is adjustable from about⅛ inch to about ⅜ inch. Each complete turn of the knob raises or lowersthe cutting height approximately {fraction (1/32)} inch.

[0039] Referring now to FIGS. 8A and 8B, grass-catching assembly 22 isshown comprising a grass catcher 22 a having a pair of brackets 90affixed to its sides by way of a plurality of fasteners 92 and lock nuts94. The grass-catching assembly 22 is releaseably positioned adjacentthe front roller assembly 18 of the mowing apparatus 10 by engaging dogor hook portions 92 of the brackets 90 about the shoulder bolts 15 (FIG.3) extending inwardly from the side plates 12 a and 12 b. In use, thegrass catcher 22 a may simply be disengaged from the lower mower unitassembly 12 by the operator grasping the handle 22 a′ and lifting anddisengaging the hook portions 92 of brackets 90 up and away from theshoulder bolts 15. The loose grass clippings may then simply be emptiedfrom the grass catcher 22 a, and the grass catcher replaced upon theshoulder bolts 15 ready for subsequent operation.

[0040] The means by which the blades of the cutting reel may beresharpened is shown in FIG. 9 where a blade sharpening handle 100 isprovided with a male threaded end 102 adapted to be received in a tappedopening 104 provided in the flat surface of drive gear 30. Upon themower 10 being secured and the rear roll assembly 18 allowed to turnfreely, the gear cover 32 (not shown in FIG. 9) is removed and thehandle 100 is threaded into tapped hole 104 in the drive gear 30 andtightened. The handle 100 is then turned slowly counterclockwise while alapping compound is applied to the blades on the cutting reel. (Becauseof the clutch bearing within the rollers 16 a and 16 b, the reversemovement of drive gear 30 does not turn the rollers.

[0041]FIG. 10 shows the upper handle assembly 14 comprising a U-shapedmember 90 closed at one end 90 a (the upper end when in use) and openedat its other end 90 b (the lower end when in use), a height-adjustingcross bar 92 extending between the two lateral portions of handle 90adjacent open end 90 b, and a pair of shoulder bolts and washerassemblies 94 for securing the handle 90 to the lower unit assembly 12at the upper end portion of the side plates 12 a and 12 b as shown bestin FIGS. 11 and 12. Handle 90 includes protrusions or extensions 92 adefined by the protruding ends of height-adjusting bar 92 (see FIG. 10)that are received through slots 91 provided in the handle 90 adjacentits open end 90 b. The dimension of protrusions 92 a are smaller thanthe opening 91 (considered lengthwise) so that the bar 92 may ridefreely up and down a slight distance within the slots 91.

[0042] Referring now to FIGS. 11 and 12, the handle assembly 14 andhandle member 90 are movable between a first mowing position and asecond rolling-transport position as shown by reference arrow “a.” Whenin the mowing position (shown in phantom in FIGS. 11 and 12), theextensions 92 a of bar 92 are received within one of multiple slots S1provided in the upper protruding portion 12 a′ and 12 b′ of the sideplates 12 a and 12 b, respectively, of the lower unit 12. Adjacent thelowest slot is a stop member S1′ beyond which the extensions 92 a maynot move, even when at the point of maximum upward displacement withinthe slots 91 of the handle. In a preferred embodiment, the operator mayadjust the handle to one of five positions for the most comfortableoperating height by moving the height-adjusting bar 92 upwardly, asshown by reference arrow “b” in FIG. 11, a sufficient distance to allowthe extensions 92 a to move upwardly out of and disengage from theoriginal slot. When the handle 90 is at the desired height for theoperator, the bar 92 is lowered, thereby engaging one of the slots S1with the extensions 92 a to releasably secure the handle 90 in thatposition. When it is necessary to roll the grass in a smoothing fashionor to simply transport or move the apparatus from one location toanother (for example, from a garage or storage facility to the area tobe mowed), the position of the handle assembly 14 may be changed (swungfrom the mowing position to the rolling-transport position) to allow themower to travel upon its rear roller assembly 16 only, as depicted inFIG. 12 and reference arrow “c.” To move the handle to therolling-transport position, the height-adjusting bar 92 is raised,thereby disengaging the protrusions 92 a from their position within oneof the slots S1. The handle 90 is then moved or swung forwardly untilthe protrusions 92 a come into contact with abutment 99 (see FIG. 9), atwhich point the height-adjusting bar is lowered such that theprotrusions 92 a engage and are received within the rolling-transportposition slots S2. During the rolling of the grass or the transportingof the apparatus, the front roller 18′ and the cutting reel 20 should beoff the ground to prevent damage.

[0043] Although the present invention has been described with apreferred embodiment, it is to be understood that variations andmodifications may be made without departing from the scope of thisinvention as set forth in the following claims. Such variations andmodification are considered to be within the purview and scope of theappended claims.

I claim:
 1. An apparatus for mowing grass comprising: a lower unitassembly; and an upper handle assembly coupled to said lower unitassembly, said handle assembly being securable in two or more positions,a first of said two or more positions intended to effect a grass mowingoperation, said lower unit comprising a rear driving assembly, a frontroller assembly, a grass-cutting assembly interposed between the frontroller assembly and the rear driving assembly, and a drive-train gearassembly coupling the rear driving assembly to the grass-cuttingassembly for rotatingly driving said grass-cutting assembly duringforward movement of the apparatus.
 2. The apparatus as in claim 1wherein said grass-cutting assembly is secured to a first drive shaft,and wherein said drive-train gear assembly comprises: a first drivegear; a second transducer gear; a drive shaft; and a third gear securedto said first drive shaft, whereupon movement of the apparatus drivessaid first drive gear which in turn drives said second gear, said secondgear in turn driving said third gear and said first drive shaft, therebydriving said grass-cutting assembly.
 3. The apparatus as in claim 2further comprising a second drive shaft, said rear driving assembly andsaid first gear being fixedly secured to said second drive shaft suchthat rolling movement of the apparatus rotatingly drives said seconddrive shaft, which in turn drives said first gear.
 4. The apparatus asin claim 2 further comprising a third drive shaft arranged between saidfirst and second drive shafts, said second gear rotating freely aboutsaid third drive shaft.
 5. The apparatus as in claim 4 furthercomprising a brushing attached to said third drive shaft, said secondgear being adapted to rotate freely about said brushing.
 6. Theapparatus as in claim 2 wherein said second gear comprises a firstportion and a second portion, said first and second portions beingaffixed to each other such that they turn in unison, the first portionof said second gear engaging said first gear and the second portion ofsaid second gear engaging said third gear.
 7. The apparatus as in claim1 further comprising a bed knife arranged generally forward of, belowand parallel to the drive shaft of said grass-cutting assembly.
 8. Theapparatus as in claim 7 further comprising biasing means to continuouslyurge the drive shaft carrying said grass-cutting assembly upwardly awayfrom said bed knife to maintain a distance therebetween.
 9. Theapparatus as in claim 1 wherein said rear driving assembly comprisesfirst and second roller sub-assemblies positioned adjacent one anotheralong said first drive shaft.
 10. The apparatus as in claim 2 furthercomprising a clutch allowing the rear driving assembly to move in theboth forward and reverse directions while continuing to provideunidirectional driving force to said grass-cutting assembly.
 11. Theapparatus as in claim 1 wherein said front roller assembly comprises aroller and a drive shaft, said drive shaft being arranged substantiallyparallel to the first drive shaft of said rear driving assembly, saidroller rotating freely about said roller drive shaft.
 12. The apparatusas in claim 1 further comprising adjustment means to lower or raise theheight at which the grass is cut.
 13. The apparatus as in claim 1further comprising a grass-catching assembly arranged adjacent saidgrass-cutting assembly.
 14. The apparatus as in claim 13 furthercomprising a grass deflector for deflecting grass cut by saidgrass-cutting assembly to said grass-catching assembly.
 15. Theapparatus as in claim 13 wherein said grass-cutting assemby isreleasably secured to the apparatus adjacent said front roller assembly.16. The apparatus as in claim 1 further comprising blade sharpeningmeans.
 17. The apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said upper handleassembly comprises a U-shaped member having an open end, a closed endand two lateral portions, and a height-adjusting cross member extendingbetween the two lateral portions of said U-shaped member, the opposingends of said cross member being slidably received within the lateralportions of said handle, the closed end of said handle defining an upperend when the apparatus is in use and the open end being pivotallysecured to said lower unit.
 18. The apparatus as in claim 17 whereinsaid upper handle assembly is movable between a first position and asecond position.
 19. The apparatus as in claim 18 wherein said lowerunit assembly includes means allowing for said handle to be releasablypositioned in a plurality of positions while said apparatus is still ina grass-mowing mode.
 20. The apparatus as in claim 19 wherein said lowerunit assembly including two or more slots for slidably receiving an endof the cross member of said upper handle assembly to releasably securethe upper handle assembly in the first position.
 21. The apparatus as inclaim 18 wherein said lower unit assembly including means allowing forsaid handle to be releasably secured in the second position after thehandle has been moved from the first position to the second position.22. The apparatus as in claim 21 wherein said lower unit assemblyincludes at least one slot for slidably receiving an end of the crossmember of said upper handle assembly to releasably secure the upperhandle assembly in the second position.
 23. The apparatus as in claim 18wherein the front roller assembly of said apparatus is adapted to engagethe ground surface upon which the apparatus travels when the upperhandle assembly is in the first position and the apparatus moves in afirst grass mowing direction.
 24. The apparatus as in claim 23 whereinthe front roller assembly of said apparatus is adjusted to be disposed aslight distance from and to avoid engagement of the ground surface uponwhich the apparatus travels when the upper handle assembly is in thesecond position and the apparatus moves in a second rolling direction,said second rolling direction being opposite from the first grass mowingdirection.
 25. An apparatus for mowing and rolling grass comprising: alower mowing-rolling unit; a handle coupled to said mowing rolling unitand securable in two or more positions, a first of said two or morepositions for performing grass mowing operations, a second of said twoor more positions for performing grass rolling operations, said lowerunit comprising a rear driving assembly, a front roller assembly, agrass-cutting assembly interposed between the front roller assembly andthe rear driving assembly, and a drive-train gear assembly coupling therear driving assembly to the grass-cutting assembly for rotatinglydriving said grass-cutting assembly during forward movement of theapparatus, said drive-train gear assembly comprising a first drive gear,a second transducer gear, a drive shaft and a third gear secured to saidfirst drive shaft, whereupon forward movement of the apparatus drivessaid first drive gear which in turn drives said second gear, said secondgear in turn driving said third gear and said first drive shaft, therebydriving said grass-cutting assembly.